CHCCS502A: Maintain legal and ethical work practices

Descriptor: This unit describes the knowledge and skills required to maintain the application of legal and ethical work practices by monitoring, coordinating and promoting their importance in providing community services and supporting duty of care requirements
Employability Skills: This unit contains Employability Skills
Application: This unit is to be assessed in relation to the specific legal and ethical context of the work role/s and requirements to which it applies

Element	Performance Criteria
Elements define the essential outcomes of a unit of competency.	The Performance Criteria specify the level of performance required to demonstrate achievement of the Element. Terms in italics are elaborated in the Range Statement.
1. Promote the importance of applying legislation and common law relevant to work role	1.1 Identify and explain legal responsibilities and obligations relating to identified work role/s 1.2 Identify and explain key statutory and regulatory requirements relating to identified work role/s 1.3 Encourage staff to clarify and fulfil duty of care responsibilities in the course of practice, to accept responsibility and be accountable for own actions and to maintain confidentiality in line with organisation guidelines 1.4 Identify and promote opportunities for staff to involve clients in decision-making and to seek client agreement prior to service provision
2. Monitor application of organisation policies and practices	2.1 Monitor work performance to ensure organisation policies, protocols and procedures are appropriately and consistently addressed 2.2 Provide information and support to initiate and contribute to the review and development of policies and protocols in line with work role 2.3 Clarify scope of work for staff to address requirements of position specifications and role responsibilities 2.4 Provide clarification for any uncertainty with regard to scope of practice in line with organisation requirements and legal and ethical guidelines 2.5 Monitor work instructions provided to staff to ensure their clarity and appropriateness in line with organisation requirements and legal and ethical guidelines
3. Monitor ethical work practices	3.1 Monitor service delivery to ensure client rights are protected and services are delivered to clients with respect for diversity of personal values, beliefs and attitudes 3.2 Monitor staff ability to use effective problem solving techniques when exposed to competing value systems 3.3 Identify potential ethical issues and ethical dilemmas in the workplace and discuss with staff to ensure maintenance of ethical work practices 3.5 Use codes of ethics to recognise and report unethical conduct according to established protocols
4. Take corrective action when client rights and interests are not being protected	4.1 Ensure client and/or their advocate/s are supported to identify and express their concerns 4.2 Instigate and monitor referral of client and/or their advocate/s to advocacy services as appropriate 4.3 Manage client complaint/s in line with organisation policy and protocols 4.4 Take action in line with organisation protocols to address witnessed signs or evidence consistent with financial, physical, emotional, sexual abuse and/or neglect of the client 4.5 Work with an understanding and appreciation of the role and responsibilities of legal guardians

Required Skills And Knowledge

This describes the essential skills and knowledge and their level required for this unit.

Essential knowledge:

The candidate must be able to demonstrate essential knowledge required to effectively perform task skills; task management skills; contingency management skills and job/role environment skills as outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit

These include:

Knowledge of key statutory, legislative and regulatory requirements relevant to work area, specifically including occupational health and safety (OHS)
Basic understanding of key concepts in Australia’s legal system
Application of duty of care principles and codes of ethics to a relevant range of work roles
Principles of access and equity relevant to provision of community services
Management of common legal issues relevant to work area, such as:
consent
- assault and battery
- bailment
- negligence
- defamation
Overview of relevant legislation in the sector and jurisdictions including contracts
Relevant standards and code of practice in the sector
Rights and responsibilities of clients
Rights and responsibilities of workers
Principles and practices for upholding the rights of the client
Principles and practices for upholding the rights of the children and young people
Implementation of strategies for managing complaints
Principles and practices of confidentiality
Definitions and explanations of the terms ‘ethics, ethical thinking and morality’
Importance of ethics in practice
Distinction between ethical and legal problems
Principles of ethical decision-making
Strategies for addressing common ethical issues
Types of abuse experienced by clients (including systems abuse and unintentional injury)
Implementation of strategies for managing abuse of a client
Reporting mechanisms and corrective actions appropriate to managing suspected abuse of a client
Role and responsibilities of legal guardians
Implementation of strategies for contributing to the review and development of policies and protocols

Essential skills:

It is critical that the candidate demonstrate the ability to:

Apply knowledge of responsibilities, constraints and issues relating to a range of work roles in line with work area and organisation policies, protocols and procedures
Monitor and manage application of legal and ethical work practices
Provide information and support to staff to enhance the application of legal and ethical work practices and correct misunderstanding and/or inappropriate application of legal and ethical guidelines
Provide support to staff in resolving and dealing with legal and ethical issues arising in the workplace
Recognise and manage unethical conduct in the workplace

In addition, the candidate must be able to demonstrate relevant task skills; task management skills; contingency management skills and job/role environment skills
These include the ability to:

Apply reading, writing and oral communication skills required to fulfil work role in a safe and appropriate manner and as specified by the organisation/service:
- this requires a level of skill that enables the worker to access, interpret and provide oral and written explanations relating to legal documentation re workplace issues and to clarify information and express encouragement and support
Apply problem solving skills that require negotiation and mediation skills to resolve problems of a difficult nature within organisation protocols
Collaborate and network with a variety of stakeholders in order to monitor and enhance the achievement of service objectives

Range Statement

The Range Statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Add any essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts.

Clients may include:	Individuals living in residential aged care environments Individuals living in the community Prospective individuals to the service or services Individuals living in government funded services and/or institutions to ‘clients’ Job seekers Children and young people
Contexts may include:	Client’s own dwelling Independent living accommodation Residential aged care facilities Community centres Community, government or private agency or organisation
Key statutory and regulatory requirements may include those related to:	Privacy legislation Health records legislation Equal employment opportunities Discrimination and harassment Residential and community services Poisons and therapeutics Registration and practice of health professionals Pharmaceutical benefits Occupational health and safety Freedom of information Public health Building standards Criminal acts International and national standards Mandatory reporting
Report may include:	Verbal: telephone face-to-face Non-verbal (written): progress reports case notes incident reports
Rights may include:	Privacy Confidentiality Dignity Freedom of association Informed choice To lodge a complaint Right to express ideas and opinions To an agreed standard of care Access to services
Rights are detailed in:	Legislation Industry and organisation service standards Industry and organisation codes of ethics and/or codes of conduct and practice Accreditation standards Units of competency International and national charters
Principles of access and equity may include:	Creation of a client orientated culture Non-discriminatory approach to all individuals using or accessing the service Respect for individual differences

Evidence Guide

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the Performance Criteria, Required Skills and Knowledge, the Range Statement and the Assessment Guidelines for this Training Package.